Hollywood Blockbuster The Sixth Sense and its star Bruce Willis have picked up top honours at America's 26th annual People's Choice Awards.

The 44-year-old actor was voted Favourite Motion Picture Star in a drama and The Sixth Sense was declared Favourite Motion Picture and Favourite Dramatic Motion Picture at the ceremony in Pasadena, California.

As he collected his award on Sunday, Willis thanked the audience "for giving The Sixth Sense the respect it deserved".

The supernatural thriller has already grossed more than $280m (£170m) at the box office and picked up two Golden Globe nominations last month.

Double win for comic actor Adam Sandler

Also among the winners, who were mostly chosen in a telephone poll of 5,000 Americans, was comic actor Adam Sandler.

His summer movie Big Daddy, which was panned by critics, was voted Favourite Comedy Motion Picture and Sandler himself was named as Favourite Motion Picture Star in a Comedy.

Runaway Bride actress Julia Roberts and Star Wars hero Harrision Ford took best acting awards at the ceremony, which also polls the US public's taste in television and music.

Top TV awards went to long-running comedy Friends, which was named Favourite Comedy Series and top-rating medical drama ER, which won Favourite Dramatic series.